Month: June 2018

Brady has long maintained that he planned to play until the age of 45, although he recently amended that to include some sort of discussion with Gisele about only playing for two more years. He has also hinted, in his Tom vs. Time documentary, that he could retire as early as following 2018.

Here are the rosters, subject to change:

The event benefits the Tom Coughlin Jay Fund, a non-profit started by the former Giants coach in the name of a former player (Jay McGillis) on his team at Boston College who died of cancer.

The Jay Fund benefits families in the fight against childhood cancer by providing comprehensive financial, emotional and practical support. It has helped more than 4,000 families and given away more than $9 million in grants, according to its website.

Last year’s softball game raised more than $30,000.

Frazier knows that this big-league stint, like two others earlier this season, may not be lasting, so his plan is to force Yankees management into wanting him around full-time as opposed to whenever there’s an extra roster spot due to a doubleheader or an outfielder is dealing with a nagging injury.

I’ve thought about it every day, Frazier said Thursday after accomplishing his daily mission in a 4-3 Yankees win over the Seattle Mariners.

Tom is a tremendous human being, Jacobs told NJ Advance Media. You can never help a guy like that enough. He’s done a lot for me in my career and taught me a lot about being a man. I’m going to always support Tom in everything he does.

Coughlin now is the executive vice president of the Jaguars, who happen to be the Giants’ season-opening opponent Sept. 9 at MetLife Stadium.

He drafted me and gave up picks to come get me, Collins said. It’s an honor to be able to play for a coach who believes in you. The Jay Fund is a great cause, and I back it 100 percent. I’ll help out by any means necessary.

It’s no secret the Yankees need starting pitching. Jordan Montgomery is out for the season after having Tommy John surgery. Masahiro Tanaka is on the disabled list with a pair of strained hamstrings. And the Yankees never know what they are going to get on any given day from Sonny Gray and Domingo German.

So GM Brian Cashman will be hunting for arms before the non-waiver trade deadline on July 31st. And while he’s reluctant to give up prized rookies Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar, Cashman has enough depth in the system to make a move for a front-line starter.

A few months ago, comedian Adam Carolla had Harbaugh on his podcast, and the question of a return to the NFL ranks came up. Harbaugh insisted that he’s very happy in Ann Arbor—while simultaneously not saying he had zero interest in going back to the pros.

My goal, really, is that I’d love to coach 100 players here at Michigan to be NFL players. I’d love to win 100 games here. So this is really personal for me, being at Michigan, for us to have great success in football and our youngsters to have great success in the classroom. I grew up here, I went to college here. I just want to have great success here.

Kind of like looking the part of the miserable manager, perhaps.

So faced with opening a spot on their 25-man roster by 1) trading Blake Swihart, whose versatility makes him attractive, 2) optioning Jackie Bradley Jr., also struggling but a strong defensive outfielder, or Brock Holt to Triple-A or 3) putting Eduardo Nunez on the DL, the team opted instead to part ways with Ramirez.

Friday’s move ends a frequently rocky three-plus seasons in Boston in Ramirez’s return as a free agent, signing a four-year, $88 million deal, with the team for which he made his MLB debut in 2005. His best year in Hanley v.2 was 2016, when he emerged as a power force with 30 home runs.

The news overshadowed Pedroia’s activation from the DL for a weekend series at Fenway Park against the Braves.

Stewart followed Gettleman to the Giants, which is a contrast to the experiences had by other ex-Panthers stars like Josh Norman, De’Angelo Williams and Steve Smith. All three criticized Gettleman for their unceremonious exits, though cutting ties with aging veteans makes football sense.

Stewart, who signed a two-year deal with the Giants at the start of free agency, sent a text message to Gettleman when he first heard the news.

His eyes were a little moist behind his dark sunglasses, but for the most part, he looked more like a man who had gone for a nice long walk than one who saw his son do something no golfer had done since Curtis Strange won back-to-back titles in 1988 and 1989.

Thursday officially brought an end to New Jersey’s seven-year, $9 million court battle to institute legal sports wagers in the face of fierce opposition from major professional and college sports leagues.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled ruled last month that a federal ban on such betting was unconstitutional, allowing states across the U.S. to allow it.

Until now, only Nevada — home to Las Vegas — had full-scale legal sports betting. New Jersey is the second state to launch since the court’s ruling, after Delaware last week.

The Browns could have made up for that by using the 2017 first-rounder they received from Philadelphia on the sensational Deshaun Watson, but, alas, they also sold that selection on draft night.

Bengals tackle Jake Fisher went through a full practice on Tuesday for the first time since having heart surgery last November.

Fisher, who had surgery to correct an irregular heartbeat and cleared for lighter workouts in February, worked in full again on Wednesday as the Bengals continued their minicamp.

The thing I love about that sketch is, how did that guy [Fallon] get booked on ‘The Tonight Show’? He’s not that good a singer. He saved up his money and bought a suit at — I picture him buying it at Structure, you remember that place? And he’s just going for it. And this weirdo in the audience [Ferrell] is heckling him. He’s not even mean. He just has a lot of questions.

However, despite a career-high seven walks from Snell, Houston was unable to figure out the former top prospect.

The Astros managed just three hits, and a home run by C.J. Cron in the early going and an RBI single from Wilson Ramos in the eighth off of Hector Rondon proved to be enough for Tampa Bay.

Houston faces off with the Rays again Wednesday with hopes of getting back in the win column. Tampa Bay will attempt to start a win streak of its own as they call on Houston-native Nathan Eovaldi to start.

Charlie Morton will take the mound for the Astros.

He had no shirt on. And no reason to be there, she found when she confronted him.

In case anyone was worried about Odell Beckham ‘s continuous contract problem, they can rest easy after what happened Saturday.

No, Beckham didn’t get a new deal. But he did guarantee his attendance for training camp, per NFL Network’s Kimberly Jones.

Beckham passed the aforementioned reporters after the conclusion of his youth camp, which he held just two days after Giants minicamp ended. While notable absences dotted other minicamps around the league, Beckham was in attendance for New York’s practices (though he only participated in the individual portion of sessions). It’s a good sign for a star wideout whose importance cannot be overstated, and whose presence was sorely missed during the Giants ‘ forgettable 2017 season.

What he’s looking for: In the last three years, Mack has three trips to the Pro Bowl and 36.5 sacks. Only Chandler Jones has more sacks over that span.

Still just 27, Mack will also be looking to receive more than Miller’s $19.02-million average and become the highest-paid defensive player in the NFL. Mack and Donald are likely to get similar amounts.

What’s the latest: Mack is reportedly looking for a huge amount of guaranteed, according to NFL Network’s Steve Wyche.

He’s expecting to get paid significant money, Wyche said. When we’re talking significant money, we’re talking guarantees in excess of $65 million, so he’s in that quarterback contract range when it comes to guarantees.

Wyche thinks the contract will get done in June — the same time deals for Jackson and Carr got done — and Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie said he anticipates an extension getting signed soon.

When we get into training camp, we don’t have a lot of time when we get into training camp, so we have to hit this thing running, so we’ll just do the best we can to educate them on that and I’m sure we’ll be good to go.

Beyond the physical aspect, Patricia also wants his players keep their noses in the playbook.

The Raiders have seven interceptions in their organized team activities. That’s two more than Oakland had last season when it finished last in the league.

This is what we want to be about for the whole 2018 season, cornerback Rashaan Melvin said, via Scott Bair of NBC Sports Bay Area. With those guys out there making those plays, you see all 11 guys flying to the [football], that’s a great habit to have.

Just stay healthy, Parker said. And if I’m not healthy, fight through it.

The red-zone struggles were the most glaring problem for Sarkisian as the Falcons fell from ninth in RZ TD percentage to 23rd, per Football Outsiders. Atlanta’s season essentially ending on a failed red-zone trip in Philadelphia, which included some questionable play-calling and a misconnection with Julio Jones, embodied the season-long struggles.

What Garoppolo can do is continue to lead. He’s doing it with Saturday throwing sessions, and he plans to do it between the end of the offseason program and the launch of training camp. Eventually, everyone will find out whether the 49ers can get back to the postseason for the first time since 2013.

The severity of the injury makes it no surprise that Miller won’t play this season, but he’s not giving up on the hope of returning to the field at some point in the future. Miller said positivity has been one of my qualities that’s helped get me through all this stuff and that he’s going to do all he can to give himself a chance to continue his career.

With my doctors and everyone I spoke to, we’re not going to put any set limitations on this, Miller said, via ESPN.com. We’re just going to take it as it goes. There has not been a definitive, ‘you can never do this again.’ That hasn’t been talked about. It’s to approach this as you are planning to get back to where I can be myself and play football and then when that time comes, some of that is out of my hands. So, I’m just going to do as much as I can to get that point and see what happens.

The Yankees selected Ryder Green an 18-year-old outfielder with their third-round pick in the 2018 MLB Draf t on Tuesday.

It was the 97th overall selection and it came with a $576,400 slot value.

Cleveland, on paper, has a laundry list of playmakers, but it boils down to consistency at the quarterback position, a quality missing by the shores of Lake Erie for eons.

The hope is that Taylor and Mayfield in whatever form it takes will flip the switch on Gordon and an offense that’s been asleep at the wheel for far too long.

What’s the next step for Devils 2016 1st-round pick Michael McLeod?

Only one player taken ahead of Michael McLeod in the 2016 NHL Draft hasn’t made his NHL debut.

I don’t think this offseason was any different for me, Brady said, via Michael Giardi of NBC Sports Boston. I thought about the things I needed to do and focused on those thing so I can be the best I can be when training camp comes.

Brady said his relationship with coach Bill Belichick is great and that he never thought about retiring over the last few months as he’s having a lot of fun playing quarterback for the Patriots. He didn’t say whether he’d be having fun with the team as they wrap up OTAs next week and his overall approach this year suggests it’s likely training camp will be the next time he’s spotted on the field.

I was in survivor mode the whole time, he says. Listen to the play. Hold onto the ball. Find the first place to fall. Make it out of this game. That’s it. You’re all off. You’re off. Your eyes, your vision is off, everything’s just…off.

After that hit, the headaches worsened. His vision blurred after practices. He played the next game, then missed two, then played the next seven straight. When his appetite was mysteriously hijacked the morning of a game against Cincinnati, Lewis asked a trainer if he could undergo a concussion test and was told he’d need to wait until Monday.

Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski are back, and New England fans couldn’t be more thrilled.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick, on the other hand, could be.

When asked how it felt to have his star quarterback and tight end on the field for minicamp on Tuesday, the Patriots coach wouldn’t single them out.

The Tigers failed to take advantage of a two-out baserunning mistake by Jose Ramirez, and Kipnis hit a tiebreaking, three-run homer two pitches later to lift the Indians over the Tigers 4-1.

Ramirez almost broke the tie himself, hitting Shane Greene’s 3-1 pitch just past the foul pole down the right-field line, but ended up drawing a walk. Yonder Alonso hit a two-out single into the right-center field gap, and Ramirez stumbled as he took a wide turn around third.

The Giants will wrap up OTAs this week before holding mandatory minicamp June 12-14.

Orioles RHP Kevin Gausman (3-5, 4.63) faces Blue Jays RHP Aaron Sanchez (3-5, 4.48) on Saturday. Gausman in winless in four starts, while Sanchez beat Detroit to pick up his first win since April in his previous outing.Choi’s pinch-hit grand slam lifts Brewers over Phillies

Chatter regarding a potential trade of Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski continues to bubble up from time to time in part because Gronkowski has yet to get a new contract. And a new contract won’t be coming in the immediate future.

Per a source with knowledge of the situation, a new contract for Gronkowski is likely, but nothing is imminent.

The source added that there’s still plenty of work to do. The biggest challenge, in our estimation (and not from any source), would be to determine whether Gronkowski will get another incentive-driven raise (he earned an extra $5.5 million last year) or whether he will have a guaranteed increase in his base pay, regardless of performance.

Then came Trump’s remarks the morning after the NFL’s new anthem policy was announced last Wednesday: You have to stand proudly for the national anthem or you shouldn’t be playing. You shouldn’t be there. Maybe you shouldn’t be in the country.

In recordings at the owners-players meeting last year, as reported by the New York Times, Lurie was highly critical of Trump and the role he played in the anthem issue: But this is not where you brandish a group of people because they own assets in a sport we love, supporting what many of us perceive as, you know, one disastrous presidency, he said, adding a profanity to his description.

Yet, by all accounts, Lurie was in favor of the policy enacted last week — it has been since revealed that the owners did not take an actual vote — and made a statement that made no reference to the new policy, but praised the players for being committed to finding productive ways to fight social injustice, poverty and other societal issues that are important to all of us.

The New England Patriots had a surprise visit after Wednesday’s practice session: Kobe Bryant.

The retired NBA star spent some time hanging around the Pats’ locker room as OTAs resumed following an extended holiday weekend.

Matt Lutovsky. Leonard’s injury is more worrisome given how long he’s been dealing with it. It’s apparently a bit of a medical mystery, which is about as bad of a two-word phrase as anyone can hear. Beckham’s ankle injury could certainly become a recurring problem, especially given that he plays a much more violent game, but for now, he’s expected to make a full recovery.

Vinnie Iyer: Beckham. Because he plays football and has gotten hurt a lot of late doing it. Before he got going as a rookie, he was hamstrung coming into the league. His position also puts him more in the line of fire in the more dangerous sport. Leonard, even with the mysterious nature of his injury, is less risky.

Jordan Greer: There’s not much evidence to support the theory that Leonard is the NBA’s version of Mariah Carey. It’s hard enough to get the guy to open up about basketball. The diva factor is probably in the 2.5-3 range only because of the lack of communication between Leonard’s camp and the Spurs. That has caused some friction, but it hasn’t destroyed the relationship. On the other side, Beckham is a star wide receiver. Being a diva kind of comes with that package, doesn’t it?

Matt Lutovsky: Beckham is a 10 on the Diva scale. That’s been scientifically proven, and it’s undoubtedly a big part of the problem. Leonard is probably a five, but it’s tough to say because he never speaks. Either way, his divaness really has nothing to do with whether he’ll be traded.

Nick Birdsong: I’m not a big fan of calling any grown man a diva, but, on the surface, Beckham is the easy answer here. However, he’s never willingly sat out while his team has a chance to contend after being cleared to play. Leonard doesn’t talk much nor does he showboat the way Beckham does, but the fact he’s not out there competing says a lot about his priorities.